The role of a manufacturer’s sales rep

By Emma Peterson.

Knowledgeable manufacturer representatives can become invaluable partners for contractors looking for support.

In a new episode of Roofing Road Trips®, Megan Ellsworth got to sit down with Mitch Heitsch. Mitch is the director of sales for all roofing brands in the Westlake Royal Roofing Products portfolio for the state of Florida.

This means he oversees representative teams working on everything from Unified Steel’s stone-coated metal to DaVinci’s composite tile. Before Mitch took this position, he was actually the VP of sales for a large roofing company in Florida.

Mitch’s experience on both sides of the table, manufacturing as well as contracting, makes him the perfect person to talk to about the importance of a good sales representative. When we asked him what exactly a sales representative brings to the table, besides a product ordering catalog, he pointed to contractor education. Mitch explained, “Everything comes back to education. As a manufacturer sales rep, my job is about educating contractors so they can turn around and educate the homeowners and building owners.”

Having this type of partner and resource is especially important for contractors in areas like Florida where a wide variety of products are available and restrictions are in place. Mitch spoke from experience:

Having been on the other side, what I wanted out of a sales rep was a partner and a resource to help me navigate everything...Here in Florida, we have this whole breadth of roofing products, from concrete tile to stone coated metal and then there’s all the regulations, like Florida product approvals and Miami-Dade approvals. It was a lot to navigate and so, as a rep, my message is that I am a partner here, so they don’t have to navigate it all alone.

And education is just the start of how Mitch partners with his contractors. He also encourages and invites his contractors to join him at industry events, “I'm gonna give a shout out to my home builder association which is the Greater Orlando Builder Association (GOBA) as well as the Florida Roofing and Sheet Metal Contractors Association (FRSA). These associations create a great space for contractors to learn and keep up with everything going on. I recommend it to everyone.”

Overall, Mitch is just one of the many incredible sales representatives out there providing the education and information that contractors need to succeed. Because with every project that goes well, it’s a win for the whole industry.

Listen to the whole episode or Watch the recording to learn more about the role of sales representatives in the roofing industry.